The Trip of a Lifetime!

Imagine traveling on ten tumbling Amazon Rivers so remote that you never meet other travelers. Instead, you chance upon enchanted waterfalls. Lagoons, hidden deep in the emerald rainforests. Feel the eyes of the forest animals watching you.

The Big 5 Photo Safari of Southern Cross Tours & Expeditions

No elephants, no lions, but where else can you photograph jaguar, giant otter, tapir, great anteater, and… southern right whales, all of them, on one trip?

Brazil Highlights for Newcomers

A tour that takes you not only to the most famous highlights but also to some of the lesser known and hidden treasures of Brazil.

Climate Change in Amazonia

 

Brazil and Germany Build a Tower for Climate Monitoring in the Amazon

Brasília – In the Amazonian rain forest, a 325 meter high tower for the observation of climate change in the region will be set up later this year. The name of the Atto (abbreviation for Amazon Tall Tower Obervatory) baptized tower emerges from a German-Brazilian partnership. The two countries are investing 7.5 million R$, the equivalent of about 2.5 million € in the observation stations. The foundation stone was placed today in the sanctuary for the sustainable development of Uatumã, 150 km from Manaus. The construction should be completed by next November.

In one of the most sensitive ecosystems on earth, which plays an important role in stabilizing the climate, the target of the observation tower is to measure the impact of global climate change on forests, which are free from floods, and thus the interaction of the forest with the atmosphere. In addition, a broad range of studies about the chemistry of the atmosphere should be carried out here.

According to the National Institute for Amazon Research (Inpa), the location for the installation of the tower was selected after carrying out a number of joint studies from the German Max Planck Institute and the University of the State of Amazonas (UEA). The tower Atto is the first of its kind in South America, four times as high as the current observation tower of the Inpa (80 meters).

The tower will be working around the clock and should serve for 20-30 years. Four smaller towers (80 meters each) are being built nearby in order to assist the data collection of the main tower. The climate monitoring is a joint venture under the direction of Inpa, the Max-Planck-Institut and the UEA, with a number of smaller organisations supporting the project.

Travel Brazil with Southern Cross Tours & Expeditions

When Southern Cross Tours & Expeditions took off 20 years ago, the idea was to offer tours and expeditions to the active and demanding traveler by penetrating regions in Brazil little known or unknown at all. We called these regions the hidden treasures of nature and culture in Brazil. The task was to discover such regions, making contacts with reliable locals, and then to develop some structures that would enable us to take travelers there and bringing them back safely.

To develop a series of new activities in a country of continental dimensions and in regions off the beaten track required experience, knowledge, perseverance and the will to invest in something new and challenging. Whether in small groups of 2 to 8 or as an individual traveler, our customers have the opportunity to reach out to the farthest und deepest spot in the Amazonian rainforest where the significance of the great German Naturalist Baron Alexander von Humboldt's “Hylaea “  becomes still evident. Detached from comfort and amenities of our modern life the focus there is exclusively on the essentials of the Tropical Rain Forest, its rivers and the natives living in it and from it.

We have also pioneered wildlife photo safaris in the Pantanal, among them our Jaguar Photo Safari. Our “Big 5” Safari, brings the 5 biggest land and sea mammals of South America before the camera of the happy photographers. On the savanna of the Nhecolândia region an extraordinary variety of wildlife can be observed and photographed on board our 4 wheel drive vehicles like on a silver plate.

One of our specials is the Ocean kayak island to island hike combined with rainforest trekking in the Atlantic Costal Rain Forest. Dream beaches, picturesque landscapes and settlements, natives of the Guarani Mbya tribes living amidst, lush rainforest, colonial sea-side architecture in Paraty are some of the highlights of that tour.
When Riding Brazil was created as a branch of Southern Cross Tours&Expeditions it was designed to cater exclusively to riders wanting to roam the savannas of the Pantanal and subtropical mountains of Southern Brazil. Those rides offer extraordinary experiences with fine horses, great landscapes and contact with locals from the countryside, their traditions and culture. Finally we don’t miss out on world-renowned highlights like Rio de Janeiros Sugar Loaf and Christ Redeemer Statue on Corcovado Mountain. We also walk on cobble stoned alleys downtown Rio de Janeiro to marvel at the contrast of ultra-modern architecture and colonial reminiscences. One of the most spectacular natural highlights in Brazil is the Iguaçu Falls. When looking from the boardwalks down into the thunderous water crushing down the rocks it just takes your breath away.

Southern Cross Tours&Expeditions offers breath taking experiences and adventures in Brazil. After you have arrived safely home you will be able to tell stories from the inside, exceeding and creating new expectations.

Peter Rohmer